Iowa State Refocuses on Toughness as Big 12 Grind Intensifies
AMES - After a blistering start to the season, Iowa State has hit its first real bump in the road - and head coach T.J. Otzelberger isn’t sugarcoating what it’ll take to get back on track.
The Cyclones, now 16-2 overall and 3-2 in Big 12 play, have dropped back-to-back road games. That’s not panic-worthy, but it is a wake-up call for a team that had been rolling and looking every bit like a top-10 squad.
Otzelberger’s message to his team? Simple, clear, and loud: toughness travels.
And it’s non-negotiable.
“You’ve gotta have a gut check,” Otzelberger said ahead of Tuesday’s home clash with a surging UCF team. “You’ve gotta come out and play with an edge. You’ve gotta play almost like you’re ticked off and you’ve got something to prove again.”
That edge - that chip on the shoulder - was a defining trait of this team early on. But in road losses to No.
19 Kansas and Cincinnati, the Cyclones looked a little too comfortable, a little too reactive. The numbers back it up: Iowa State was outscored 37-14 in points off turnovers across those two games.
That’s a major red flag for a group that’s built its identity on defensive pressure and transition offense. According to KenPom, ISU still ranks fifth nationally in defensive turnover percentage - but lately, the results haven’t reflected that.
The Big 12 doesn’t offer much breathing room, and Otzelberger knows it. That’s why this week’s practices have been about reestablishing the Cyclones’ core DNA: aggressive, disruptive, relentless.
UCF, meanwhile, isn’t easing into league play. Head coach Johnny Dawkins has completely reshaped his roster through the portal, and it’s paying off.
The Golden Knights are 14-3 and 3-2 in conference, riding their best start since 2019. They’ve got a legit backcourt in Themus Fulks and Riley Kugel - Fulks is the engine, a floor general who elevates everyone around him, while Kugel is the go-to scorer with the confidence to match.
Add in a front line full of length, athleticism, and experience, and you’ve got a team that’s not just competing - they’re contending.
“They’ve got a lot of older guys, and they play with a lot of toughness,” Otzelberger said. “Their point guard play with Fulks has been phenomenal… and Kugel gives them a real scorer. They’re playing with confidence.”
That’s the type of team Iowa State has to out-tough - especially at home, where Hilton Coliseum has long been one of the toughest places to play in college basketball. But Otzelberger isn’t relying on the crowd to bring the energy. He’s demanding it from his players, possession by possession, practice by practice.
Senior guard Nate Heise, one of the team’s emotional leaders and a key piece on the defensive end, echoed that mindset.
“The hardest thing is consistency,” Heise said. “But we can control our effort. That should be 100 percent every game.”
Effort is what Otzelberger builds his program on. That, and an unwavering commitment to doing the hard things - diving for loose balls, fighting through screens, closing out with purpose, and never letting up defensively. It’s not glamorous, but it wins games, especially in a league as unforgiving as the Big 12.
“We try to create a mindset to build a culture about embracing doing hard things,” Otzelberger said. “Having a get-to mentality instead of a have-to mentality… that continued focus to do hard things, that’s what we’re about.”
There’s no magic formula. No schematic overhaul. Just a return to the habits that made Iowa State one of the most dangerous teams in the country through the first two months of the season.
“You’ve gotta fight to do all those things to play well,” Otzelberger said. “It doesn’t guarantee victory… but it gives you a chance. And that’s what we’ve gotta do every night - give ourselves a chance.”
That starts with the Cyclones’ core trio - Joshua Jefferson, Tamin Lipsey, and Milan Momcilovic - asserting themselves with purpose. They’ve got the talent. Now it’s about pairing it with toughness.
And the message is resonating inside the locker room.
“Everybody has to take a step up and play to our standards,” said backup big man Dominykas Pleta. “Every possession matters.”
Tuesday night at Hilton, the Cyclones get a chance to reset the tone - not just for one game, but for the long grind ahead. Because in the Big 12, toughness isn’t just a mindset. It’s a requirement.